GM India unveils Chevrolet Optra 1.6

[Ming]

GM India unveils Chevrolet Optra 1.6; ad campaign to break January

- NEW DELHI

In a clear move to capture a sizeable market share in the lower C segment which accounts for about 82,000 units annually and has players like Honda City, Hyundai Accent Tornado, Baleno and Mitsubishi Lancer vying for consumer attention of the automobile market in the country, General Motors India (GMI) has launched a competitively priced version of its the premium mid-size sedan Chevrolet Optra 1.6. At the launch function in Delhi yesterday, Aditya Vij, president and managing director, GMI, said, "The Chevrolet Optra 1.6 represents an extension of GM India's commitment to provide more for less. With Optra 1.6 we are seeking to take our competitive edge to a new dimension by raising the bar in terms of the value proposition that it stands for."

The other variant of the model, the Optra 1.8, is positioned in the upper C segment. Toyota Corolla and Skoda Octavia are the two big players in this segment, which accounts for 16,000 units per annum in sales. The manual and automatic transmission variants of the Optra 1.8 model are priced between Rs 7.89 lakh and Rs 10.29 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). In contrast, the Optra 1.6 is priced at Rs 7.29 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) and its LS variant costs 7.84 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi).

With this price advantage, GMI plans to go whole hog in promoting Optra 1.6 with a well-orchestrated communication plan. The budget earmarked for the year is in the region of Rs 15-20 crore. The television commercial for Optra is already on air; and a print campaign specifically to drive home the price advantage of the Optra 1.6 and devised by Enterprise Nexus ? would be unveiled in January next year.

....

GMI has also set its target high. Chevrolet Optra has sold 4,000 units so far and has a market share of 23 per cent in the upper C segment. With the launch of Optra 1.6, GMI hopes to take this share to 28 per cent in the next one year. © 2003 agencyfaqs

Full Article Here

GM India - Chevrolet

[mgescuro]

Ya know? That exterior designs ain't so bad.

[Ming]

Originally posted by mgescuro@Jan 4 2004, 06:31 PM
Ya know? That exterior designs ain't so bad.

It's almost as good as the theme music on the GM Inda web site - check the link! :P

[mgescuro]

heh heh heh

[LegendNH]

I actually like the front end a lot on the picture above - looks mean and aggressive, yet subtle

[momolos]

Did anybody catch the Chevrolet Forester on the site?

[powervette]

dont you realize that it will be a shame for GM to offer Daewoo as Chevy in western and Central Europe???

Everybody is going to perceive chevy cars as cheap junk for the poorest citizens,poeple dont know here what chevy brand means in USA,and they will never know as long as Daewoos are sold with chevy badge ! :angry:

[doh]

Originally posted by powervette@Jan 5 2004, 04:22 PM
dont you realize that it will be a shame for GM to offer Daewoo as Chevy in western and Central Europe??

I agree fully. Pontiac tried it in the early 90's with the Lemons I mean Lemans and it was a hard sale, even with ext. warranties and reduced interest.

This car is on it's way to Canada along with the Epica and Aveio

[Mr_Pringle]

Originally posted by powervette@Jan 5 2004, 10:22 AM
dont you realize that it will be a shame for GM to offer Daewoo as Chevy in western and Central Europe???

For the price/size bracket that the Optra is playing in, it is a fine vehicle. Daewoo quality is improving. GM would have a hard time finding a better car to plug into this slot for the price.

[powervette]

Originally posted by Mr_Pringle+Jan 5 2004, 09:03 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (Mr_Pringle @ Jan 5 2004, 09:03 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-powervette@Jan 5 2004, 10:22 AM
dont you realize that it will be a shame for GM to offer Daewoo as Chevy in western and Central Europe???

For the price/size bracket that the Optra is playing in, it is a fine vehicle. Daewoo quality is improving. GM would have a hard time finding a better car to plug into this slot for the price. [/b][/quote]
:argue:

OK,but do You imagine the newest,beautiful Corvette C6 standing next to Daewoo for 10.000 Euro?

Who is going to buy Corvette then?He will be confused about buying a Chevy

[Mr_Pringle]

Originally posted by powervette+Jan 7 2004, 07:51 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (powervette @ Jan 7 2004, 07:51 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'>

For the price/size bracket that the Optra is playing in, it is a fine vehicle. Daewoo quality is improving. GM would have a hard time finding a better car to plug into this slot for the price.

:argue:

OK,but do You imagine the newest,beautiful Corvette C6 standing next to Daewoo for 10.000 Euro?

Who is going to buy Corvette then?He will be confused about buying a Chevy [/b][/quote]
We have the Corvette sitting next to the Aveo in the U.S. I realize that Cherolet isn't as well established in India, but I think the placement as company for the economic and the expensive is fine. Quality per price is where automakers win. Will the Optra be a Corvette in disguise?-- no. But it will be a fine car for the price.

But I'm not trying to start an argument. It's all good.